Happy Belated Friday! I’ve already got Monday’s comic underway, shouldn’t be a delay.
The issue of GPS tags for child safety is something I am going to invoke “character opinions are not necessarily those of the author” for. I feel attaching your kid to a GPS beacon is a personal decision that should be made one on one, but if my google-fu on the issue holds water, GPS implants are more of a sci-fi thing than reality. In real life you would also have to implant a battery into your child for the chip to work. GPS-tagged bracelets are a more realistic approach.
When I was first drafting Mina, I wanted to make sure I got an authentic name, so I turned to Wikipedia for name ideas. I settled on a combination of real-world writers/human rights advocates Mina Assadi and Mahnaz Afkhami. I turned to the same list today for a name for Mina's daughter (Who I don't THINK I've named yet, but if I have I'm retconning it. XD), and chose to name her after Goli Ameri, President for the Center for Global Engagement.
Discussion (41) ¬
They look kinda cute talking together like that. Very relaxed. Makes me feel a bit sorry for when “A few minutes earlier” turns into “Present…” as this is not gonna be very great. Also, just noticed Mina’s purse. Awesome.
RFID tags are local, and read-only… they can’t be accessed or pinpointed outside of a hundred yards for the best ones, and are actually more functional as a card a kid (or employee) would keep in a wallet, with a system that pings them constantly to know where they are (which could cost infrastructure). RFID is not GPS, nor do we have a capability for permanent implanted GPS tags at this point (though there’s wireless-recharge tech that could allow it to be recharged while implanted, it’s a *ton* of effort for something that is nearly non-functional, so I’m calling that non-viable… though it’s possible. My aural implant (wireless bluetooth headset, effectively) is recharged that way… but it’s just a prototype, and not approved as a medical device).
I actually have two implanted RFID tags: a coil tag (similar to what’s in the cards), in my thigh, and a “chip” tag in my hand (the small one people freak out about). The one in my hand is mostly used as a “sign in” for my wearable and my front door lock (no handle, just a mag-lock… my chip works, and my gf’s phone has NFC that does the same thing). The one in my leg is for various systems that use it, like a handful of metro-cards around the world, or similar.
Get the kid a Cellphone, and they’ll have GPS. Teach them to use the tech and you don’t even need to spy on them; You could just ping the phone to see where they are. Bonus points you could just call and ask and see what’s up. A lot of kids should be learning to use their tech and how it works anyway: wearables have existed for years, but many don’t know about them or can’t use them because they have been taught an obsolete skill set in schools.
RFID chips could be useful as IDs, depending on the views on privacy. There’s a world of things the implants *can* be used for, or similar implants could be used for, but anyone pushing this idea at this stage is probably misinformed and/or stands to profit from it.
Also, I’m very happy I get to share my expertise… it’s not every day that Cybernetics is something that I can use in conversation, so please forgive me if I’m verbose.
Verbose away! I did some light googleing on the subject, but some first-hand info is always good.
That is some seriously interesting stuff.
I can tell exactly where my kids are by pinging their iPhones. These days it’s not far-fetched for kids to have them as young as 8 or 10, depending on the situation. My daughter was probably one of the last ones in her class to get one when she got hers when she started high school.
Subdermal chips are more for short range identification than anything else– especially when placed subdermally, they take a pretty strong pulse from the reader to get them to charge up enough to transmit. (This is what “chipping” your dog involves– and it takes a minute or two of roaming around with the reader just to find the silly thing.)
Running even a single channel GPS isn’t feasible without a battery– you really can’t do one even on a wristband without having to charge the thing every day– and it doesn’t work very well inside either, because GPS doesn’t penetrate walls very well.
That doesn’t even bring up the fact that even if you could DO a bracelet or something that can pick up GPS satellites and figure out where it is, you now have to get that information OFF the device if the parent is going to find it useful– so that bracelet now needs some kind of cellular or other network radio. More battery, and now you get monthly fees.
Much easier just to give ’em an old hand-me-down iPhone 3GS and set the settings so the location awareness can’t be turned off.
Ah, yes, time to teach the kids exactly what ‘Invasion of Privacy’ means. After all, Big Brother is your friend, right? : /
Pretty much what I was thinking. Get them used to being tracked everywhere they go at a young age, so when folks insist they be tracked everywhere they go as adults they think “Meh, this is normal”.
If any school administration tells me they need to “chip” or otherwise track my child everywhere they go, I will tell them to FOAD and home-tutor the child. (Actually considering the current state of US public education I may just do that anyway, so I can be sure the child gets an actual education…)
If people wanted privacy they wouldn’t use Facebook.
I also would get angry if I was told to chip my niece. Hell, I don’t even have a Cell-Phone since for all the inconvienence of not being able to call important things at will, I enjoy not being bothered by random crap through my day. And also why I won’t be using Google Glass. (Well that and their whole to early adopt you have to kiss their arse and then pay them money to beta test for them.)
Public privacy is sadly coming to an end and the people that claim to want it most are trying to kill it as quickly as possible.
Oh, please think very hard about that. I don’t want to start homeschool wars here, I really don’t, but please please please consider if you are qualified to teach math (through Algebra II at a minimum, but better if Calculus I), biology, chemistry, physics, history (both American and world), geography, literature, writing, scientific writing, art, music, computer programming, health, and speech/debate. Knowledge of child psychology and pedagogy would be really helpful too.
Most people simply aren’t qualified to homeschool.
I think they make textbooks and pre-fab curriculums specifically for homeschooling, don’t they? So even if Parent X is not certified to teach they can utilize materials from people who are to home-school.
I could be wrong about that though, just speaking off-the-cuff.
There are some home schooling systems that are amazing! I have seen what students enrolled in CaLiva get: A computer, printer, new textbooks, geology kits, lab kits, field trips, frequent contact with online teachers, meetings via phone and in person, etc… It makes me wish that I was homeschooled until high school!
“Most people simply aren’t qualified to homeschool” is a statement you have to back up; you can’t just claim it.
I know a few people (even relatives) who I would say aren’t capable of homeschooling their own kids… if they chose to do it by themselves, which isn’t by any means the only option. Effective homeschooling means taking control of the education of your children and making informed decisions about how to best educate them. Almost any parent can do that – we’ve just gotten used to the idea that the government does it for us.
You don’t have to know the material. You have to know how to locate resources. Sometimes that’s textbooks, but other times it’s websites like Khan Academy (math from beginner through calculus and beyond), and other times it’s friends, family, and people in the community who can share their expertise. You can even add occasional classes, sometimes at well above the level they’d get in school.
Homeschooling has a proven track record with higher test scores than public-school kids. Before I got to college, I was concerned about the transition, but I held down a 3.91 GPA over six years and graduated with two degrees. Homeschooling instilled in me a love of learning that I rarely see in public-school kids (and that makes me sad).
And the parents who raised me at home? My mom’s only now attending college (after me). My dad had bad grades in school and even now has to ask me how to spell stuff (his shopping lists are amusing). You DO NOT NEED to be a genius to school your kids at home.
Half those subjects are irrelevant.
Teach a kid maths and the sciences and they can figure out the other crap for themselves.
These days you could probably just sit them down in front of Wikipedia and tell them to do a Wiki-crawl for 6 hours, and they’ll pick up useful knowledge from it… as long as they’re taught to treat everything with a bit of scepticism.
Isn’t anyone going to ask what that strange picture is in the background of panel 2? Is that a rose wrapped around a sword, with a sun crying blood tears thrown in for good measure? “Spring is here?” That’s not the kind of pictures they have in my office! NO FAIR!
Probably a play on the “Winter Is Coming” art from Game of Thrones; we could post just about anything in our cubicles as long as they were not sexual or offensive to anyone. I had a LOT of Star Wars and Lord of the Rings stuff in my cube…
Ah! That makes sense. Not watching that show is really making my life difficult.
You have my approval and appreciation for appreciating those franchises. I actually don’t have a cube of my own. 🙁
I know I said this before but those two are really getting along well. Mark my words – a ‘ship is in the works.
DAVE! TRUNCHBULLS, REALLY? I’M LAUGHING SO HARD, MY DAD’S WORRIED.
Mission accomplished. :3
Trunchbulls… From “Matilda”?
My 3rd attempt at writing this comment (the site hates me)…
But Ms Trunchbull was totally the best character in Matilda. I was really disappointed when she was scared away at the end. =(
I did kinda have a crush on her… Don’t even ask why…
LOL TRUNCHBULLS
Ugh, I would never GPS-anything my kids. Abduction by strangers is extremely rare in America, and I don’t feel like GPS-ing my kids for the highly off chance I’ll need it is worth all of the cons (getting used to being tracked, government being able to use it, etc.).
I think ANY amount of abduction is too much, but I don’t think that’s the whole reason. Its probably more just to keep track of kids committing vandalism or other small crimes. If that Trunchbull family is anything like the character it was inspired from, I bet their home is a prime target on mischief night.
Of course any amount of abduction is too much, I wasn’t saying it was no big deal. I was saying it’s not common enough for me to tag my kids.
Is it just me or would those two make a great couple?
It’s not just you, I see it too.
I wonder how Selkie would feel about it XD.
A new mom to help out dad?
At any rate, it’d take in loco parentis to a whole new level.
First time posting, but long time reader.
One thing I absolutely have to say – retcon, is that a Torchwood reference?!? Because, I just have to say, that makes you even more awesome!
And I would have to agree with Todd + Mina shippers.
Why in the world would a Bad Wolf like a Who-niverse shout out? ;P
But sadly, no it is not meant as a Torchwood shout-out. “Retcon” stands for “Retroactive Continuity”, and (I believe) originates from American comic books. It’s anything that takes an established event or character and alters/re-writes it to fit into a new story.
It’s a reference to Matilda right? Which is cool, because that’s a story about a girl about Selkie’s age. That’s an even cooler reference than Dr Who.
Ah, I forgot the Dr. Who “Trunchbull” lol. Well, I’m a fan of both that and “Matilda” 🙂
Definitely not a fan of these two becoming a couple.
Man, I read down the comments for a while, and I was kinda worried that no one would get the Matilda reference!
Parents: spend a few hundred dollars on GPS tracking for kids.
Kids: spend a few cents defeating it with aluminum foil.
So I am re-reading through the archives here. Did you know a lot of schools have this thing now where students have to carry a student ID and they have GPS chips in them that allow the school to track them?
Laser-beam eyes? Was that intentional foreshadowing?
Lol, on a re-read this is pretty funny